Many public and private groups, such as security and safety personnel (e.g., police, fire fighters and ambulance drivers) use various different communication devices operating on various different communication networks. For example, many public service organizations, such as police, fire and EMT, utilize land mobile radios communicating through push-to-talk technologies. Each organization may have its own communication network and/or its own communications channel. However, communications among different endpoints of different networks such as endpoints of different police, fire or other security networks may present a challenge. Collaboration between the different agencies and networks tends to be ad hoc and inefficient. When achieved, it often involves laborious manual intervention. Organizations working towards interoperability solutions include Raytheon JPS Communications, IP Blue, Twisted Pair, M/A-COM, Motorola, EADS, and Cisco Systems.
Once interoperability has been achieved it may allow a user to monitor several different groups using a single device. These groups may be arranged into virtual talk groups. The virtual talk groups may be comprised of endpoints communicating with one another using a common or a differing communication technology and/or channel. The communication technology that allows the user to monitor several different virtual talk groups may also be used to provide interoperable communication between different communication devices using different technology (e.g., cell phone or push to talk devices) and/or different channels (e.g., different frequencies).
Some of the monitored virtual talk groups may include high priority communications, while others may include more mundane communications. In large working environments (e.g., a cross-discipline emergency situation or a shipping yard) the user monitoring the virtual talk groups may not be able to readily identify a speaker by their voice or several communications may come in a single burst making it difficult to distinguish individual communications. In a situation in which the communication is a high priority communication, time spent checking each monitored virtual talk group to determine where a high priority communication came from can be costly. Furthermore, there may be instances in which the user monitoring the virtual talk groups needs to direct their attention to an alternate task. Then, when the user returns their attention to monitoring the virtual talk groups they may not be aware that a communication has occurred.
Many devices such as citizen band radios include an indicator light indicating when the radio is presently transmitting or receiving a signal on the currently tuned frequency. Some radios also provide alerts when a severe weather warning is issued on a channel other than the channel to which the radio is currently tuned. Other devices, such as power meters or local area network (LAN) activity LEDs, may include peak level indicators that may display the peak signal level detected for a certain amount of time.